Saturday, August 18, 2012

Why Mitt Romney appears to be a spineless, dishonest shape-shifter

This may be the most sympathetic blog I have ever written about Mitt Romney.

The video below shows the record on the extreme flip flop nature of Mitt Romney. It seems strange that Mitt Romney's position on so many issues could be reversed so thoroughly since he has begun his Presidential Campaign. What could be happening that could make him such an etch-a-sketch man?

Postulating causes of that metamorphosis may not take us in a direction that most of us would find familiar. Mitt Romney is not like most of us. His life has been blessed with riches that we will never know. He has experienced the leadership power of being a Corporate CEO and the political power of a Governor of Massachusetts. This is the second time he has attempted a run for the Presidency of the United States. In order to have accomplished all that in his lifetime, he must be knowledgable, capable and at one time must have been likeable.

Although Romney has not made it part of his political campaign, he was a Mormon Bishop in Boston for many years. He was a generous contributor to the Mormon religion. Although many consider Mormonism a cult, Romney did get positive life experiences by being a member.

Tony Kimball, a long-time Romney colleague, said he was "shocked" by Mr Romney's "end justifies the means" approach to trying to win the White House.

Tony Kimball

"There is no way that I can square what Mitt is doing and saying on the campaign trail with the Mitt I have know for 40 years and I don't know how he can square it either," said Mr Kimball, a retired university politics professor who served as another Boston area Mormon bishop and then spent seven years as Mr Romney's executive secretary.

Boston Mormon Temple

"I am dismayed by the things he feels the need to do as a political candidate. This is foreign to the way he spoke and presided in the church. It is not the same person."

"The sharp-edged individualism, the turning his back on the poor, the arguing that the rich deserve more tax breaks, that is all counter to what Mormonism teaches about compassion and collective care."

"Mitt seems to create a caricature of Obama and the Democrats and then attacks that creation. I think he lacks the antennae that a good politician needs and I have serious misgivings about how he would manage the White House."

So what has thrown him off his game? Why does he appear to be so wishy-washy, aloof and incapable of being President? Why would he deny the exceptional health care plan he provided as Governor of Massachusetts? Why would he change his opinions on almost every major issue he stood for since he has been a Presidential contender?

Which is Mitt?

One reason is that he is a man who is being molded by a new Republican Party. A Party that must reward their billionaire donors. A Party whose policies violate Romney's own standards and personal values. As such he is a man out of touch with his own sensibilities. A man so unlike his own Party's thinking that his actions, his speech and his body language appear off to us. He is a man who has given up on his own confidence. Like a fish out of water, he is trying to survive in a world where everything is different than he knows. By his flip-flops and lies we know he has given in to his "owners" and now his mind is theirs. He is spine-less in that way.

Honesty is not his forte. He is devilishly clever enough to realize when his policies are unpopular with voters and dishonest enough to change his policies on a dime to capture votes, even when it conflicts with his real beliefs. He seems to have no problem with lying to the public about Obama and Democratic policies. He truly does create lies about Obama and then blames him for them. He is dishonest and a shape-shifter in that way.

Somehow in the excitement of this campaign he has forgotten his religious teachings. His charity now begins with his wealthy supporters at the expense of those who struggle to make ends meet. Thy shalt not lie is an easy commandment for him to break.

This is not a man that we can trust as President. We can reasonably expect that this is a man who will deliver favors to those billionaires who are buying the Presidency. He will forego his own thinking on all kinds of decisions to be led by his masters. His dishonesty with the American people is sure to continue in office if he were elected. When crisis is upon us, we do not want a dishonest puppet leading us to his master's commands.